


Maker, Let Mine Be The Last

by maramcreates



Series: The Nightingale's Loom [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Choices, F/F, Femslash, Forgiveness, Grey Wardens, Nudity, Post-Dragon Age: Inquisition, Reunions, Rituals, Romance, Sexual Content, The Calling, The Joining, The Taint, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-17
Updated: 2015-09-17
Packaged: 2018-04-21 04:08:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4814390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maramcreates/pseuds/maramcreates
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With Corypheus defeated and Seeker Cassandra Pentaghast ascending the Sunburst Throne as Divine Victoria, Leliana, Spymaster of the Inquisition and Advisor to the Inquisitor herself, finds that tying up loose ends is a dull and monotonous task. Dull...until an intruder is caught leaving her personal chambers.<br/>This is a story of love and sacrifice, faith and forgiveness, trust and hope.<br/>It is the first of several stories that will follow Leliana and her Warden, Elissa Cousland, and I hope it brings you as much joy to read as it did for me to write.</p><p>'Maker, Let Mine Be The Last' is a companion piece to '<a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/5877835">I Am Shielded By Flame</a>.' That other work is intended to be read after 'Maker, Let Mine Be The Last' (though it can be read alone, first, or concurrently, as per your preference).</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The First Day

**Author's Note:**

> (1) Much love and thanks to lizcommotion for her support and wonderful copy editing.  
> (2) Spoilers **if** you have NOT played "Dragon Age: Origins" and "Dragon Age: Inquisition" all the way through (no DLCs, other games, or other media covered).  
>  (3) For those of you who are not familiar with the Dragon Age universe, I've included an appendix at the end with relevant quotations/stories/links/etc.  
> (4) While I tried to stick to canon as much as I could, there are a few bits that I decided to ignore. Mostly, I did so because I felt that I could tell a more solid story that way. For instance, I ignored the existence of Fiona (if that means something to you, then consider yourself warned - if that means nothing to you, then you're not missing anything).  
> (5) Reading: If you choose to read the two stories concurrently then begin with 'Maker, Let Mine Be The Last.' Once you reach the second set of '~~~' in the first chapter (right before the final third), read 'I Am Shielded By Flame' all the way through, and then return to 'Maker, Let Mine Be The Last.'
> 
> Updated:  
> \- 9/22/2015 for minor typos and slight grammatical reworkings.  
> \- 10/4/2015 for minor typos and slight grammatical reworkings.  
> \- 1/31/2016 for minor typos and slight grammatical reworkings; for cleaning up tags.  
> \- 2/1/2016 to add notation regarding companion piece; for minor reworkings in light of companion piece content.  
> \- 2/27/2016 for minor typos.

_Maker, it never ends!_ Leliana tossed even more documents onto her desk and pinched the bridge of her nose.  
The discordant symphony of birds, and spies, and messengers about her only amplified her desire to step out into the night. Some fresh air, a few moments under a starry sky, and letting arrows fly into some bales of hay would do wonders. Perhaps a short break was in order? Braving a glance at her mounds of paperwork, she thought, _They'll certainly still be here when I return._  
Before she could entertain any notions of guilt, she rose out of her chair, and grabbed her bow and quiver. After a few short moments she had made her way down a few flights of the tower's spiral stairs and was out the door.  
The expanse awaiting her outside was a welcome contrast to the rookery that had been her life for last several months. With Cassandra wrapping things up with the Inquisition in preparation for her new role as Divine, and Evelyn's new role as international peace keeper, Leliana barely had any time left to herself. Then there was the matter of them both wanting to secure her services as an adviser.... Sister Nightingale was in high demand, it seemed.  
_Enough of that,_ she brought her focus back to the moment, and soon found herself at the stables. She removed her gloves, not wanting to ruin them, and got to work. Heaving a few bales to setup her targets took a some minutes, but the exertion only whetted her desire to get shooting. She reached beside her to retrive her quiver, and an errant steel arrowhead nicked her hand. Cursing her clumsiness, she sucked at the wound to still the bleeding.  
"I have news, Ser," reported Munin. The lithe and graying woman had approached her soundlessly, but had the sense to announce herself before Leliana's bow was in hand. She was a spy veteran that Leliana explicitly trusted to oversee her Skyhold related operations, but Maker was her timing awful.  
She let out a long sigh, and asked, "Could this news not wait a few minutes more?"  
"An intruder was caught, Ser," was Munin's simple reply.  
"An intruder that requires my personal attention, Munin? Do tell." Her reserves for patience already low, Leliana couldn't help the chilling tone that accompanied her words. It seemed to have no effect on Munin, however, and Leliana was left as impressed as always with the elf's nerves.  
"She was caught leaving your personal chambers."  
A rush of anger washed over Leliana, but she maintained her composure. Her quarters were by far the least accessible from those of the Inquisition's other advisers, and rightfully so. Spymasters always had enemies...motivated and deadly enemies.  
"I see."  
An intruder was certainly a change from the monotony of documents, though she would have preferred the documents. A confrontation with an intruder that specifically targeted a Spymaster's personal chambers was likely to get messy, and a small part of her reveled in the possibility of messy. A small part that she often wished wasn't there, but there it was nonetheless.  
"Very well," Leliana turned to walk to Skyhold's dungeons, replacing the unsoiled gloves upon her hands, "let's see what she has to say for herself, shall we?"

~~~

"She carried only a few items Ser, which we placed here," Munin pointed towards the laden table propped outside the interrogation room.  
Upon the table rested those items, all quite telling in their own way. A heavy and worn traveling cloak that seemed to have a few grommets along the edge caught her eye first. Doubtless, the cloak doubled as a shelter when needed. An equally worn fur lined leather coat and gloves lay next to the cloak. Necessary if one intended to travel to Skyhold, nestled as it was among the Frostback mountains. A small pouch with barely any coin was next. Not unusual, but telling given the context. A nondescript bedroll and a small leather bag of camp supplies only further fleshed out the overall picture of a woman on a mission.  
 _A mission to do what exactly? Break into my quarters and get caught?_  
That a woman capable of getting to her chambers unnoticed could certainly leave them unnoticed, had not escaped her.  
A utilitarian knife, completely plain and unremarkable, was the only weapon on the table, and even so it was obviously better suited as a camping tool than an assassin's blade. Still, it was a knife, and she certainly knew of a few capable fighters that would be nearly unstoppable with such a mundane tool.  
The final piece of the puzzle lay in the form of a small box full of well used writing supplies. No documents, no list of contacts, just writing supplies. Most assassins, assuming this woman was even sent as one, don't bother with writing supplies. Their superiors find out soon enough if a target had been eliminated, and, if anything, the assassins tend to receive missives rather than send them. Curious.  
A failed spy mission seemed unlikely considering the confidence this woman had in the tools of her trade. The only possibility remaining was that she served simply as a message. But what spy would knowingly sacrifice herself in delivering a master's message?  
"This woman has obviously traveled long to get here, and did not expect to leave." She said aloud to Munin, who surely realized all of this, as much as to herself.  
Hoping to better understand the intruder's mind, she picked up the cloak to further examine it. Perhaps there would be an insignia Munin failed to discover? Disturbing the cloak had released a faint scent of her favorite wildflower, Andraste's Grace, and a silent fury began to edge out Leliana's curiosity.  
This woman had rifled through her personal affects.  
She turned to snap at Munin, "So, have you deduced the length of her foray into my chambers?"  
The normally infallible Munin, was visibly uncomfortable with her question, "No longer than a quarter of an hour."  
Leliana knew that no one less than a master spy could have discovered much in that length of time, but the invasion of her privacy stoked her anger regardless.  
With less nervousness, Munin offered, "She made no struggle when we captured her."  
As if that were a consolation! Still, it was of interest and quite odd. Leliana's curiosity regained some of its lost ground.  
"I think it is time that I personally welcomed this little bird to Skyhold, yes?" Having set down the offending cloak, Leliana then entered the interrogation room alone and shut the door.

The walls of the room were bare, save a single small hook upon which a half full skin of water hung. As with most rooms in Skyhold, the ceiling was high and the room was generally spacious, making this interrogation room a mercy in contrast to others elsewhere.  
A single chair sat in the middle of the room, with the intruder bound to it. Although Leliana disallowed more traditional means of interrogation, she still insisted on the use of some forms of sensory manipulation. Sacks covering heads were such a one, as they not only deprived a subject from seeing the room about them, they also heightened the other senses which were much more easily tricked.  
Looking over her prey, Leliana immediately saw how the woman succeeded in getting as far as her chambers...she was easily overlooked and she blended in completely. She donned weathered and practical clothing, an old shirt darned many times over, and a pair of plain leather pants that had seen better days. Both had plenty of life left in them.  
She also wore a pair of clunky, fur lined, leather boots with what seemed to be very faded ribbons tied through the buckles. Lingering on this, Leliana noted that while it was probably an improvement once, it was no longer. Surely the woman knew this? The woman herself sat relaxed, though attentive to her visitor, leaving Leliana with the impression that the woman had gone through this song and dance many times before.  
She began to circle the woman, taking her all in, drawing out the moment to unnerve her. If her intimidation was working, then the woman showed no sign of it...eliciting Leliana's irritation and a grudging respect. A circuit completed, she stood before the intruder and let another long, though unfruitful, moment pass.  
"I hear that you wandered, quite skillfully, into my nest earlier," Leliana began to circle around the woman once more, "and I find myself wondering what important message you had to impart that would have surely left you dead once delivered?"  
The woman made no response, but Leliana continued, "Let us not insult each other with lies, I know a master spy when I see one," she began to draw close to the woman. "What I have yet to clearly see, however, is what your death would accomplish."  
Leliana, nearly upon her, recoiled at the scent of Andraste's Grace, stronger than it was on the cloak, and nearly lost all composure. Had she rolled among her things?! After a few moments, though the flower's scent still lingered in her nostrils, she steeled herself and continued with her interrogation.  
"You will do me the courtesy of enlightening me with your motivations, and perhaps I will show you the Maker's mercy." Her face was now barely a hand's breadth away from the woman's head.  
Surprisingly, the woman breathed in deeply as if to take in Leliana's scent, and Leliana was unable to hold her anger in check any longer. Grabbing the woman by the collar, Leliana exposed a deep scar along the nape of the woman's neck, where it marred her dark skin with a slight blush of pink.  
Leliana gasped.  
Elissa's scar ran down that neck. Without hesitation, she tore the sack off the woman's head.  
A long moment passed before breath escaped Leliana's lips. She took hold of the woman and kissed her deeply, fearing that a break in contact would wake her from what was undoubtedly a wonderful dream.  
Eventually, she dared to breathe, "Elissa...."  
Elissa's dark curls were tied back, as was her custom, leaving her other features plainly visible. Bright green eyes were set above high cheekbones, and the years had not diluted their ability to pay complete attention. Those eyes were surely taking in Leliana with far more intensity than Leliana could coolly ignore. A curl accenting Elissa's lips confirmed her suspicions, and Leliana struggled to maintain some semblance of composure.  
Luckily, she was still furious.  
Her unspent rage came forth plainly, as she demanded, "How could you do this? I might have had you killed. I might have killed you myself!"  
"And yet you did no such thing." Elissa spoke with infuriating assurance, which only fueled Leliana's anger further.  
"What would possess you to make such a gamble? Did you not think of what it would have done to me if you died by my hand? Maker! What would be left of me then?" the thought was enough to shake her at her core.  
"As your faith in the Maker has guided you, my faith in you has guided me." With a soft smile, Elissa continued, "It is a gift, my love, a gift to you that I placed a life in your hands and you showed mercy. A gift to you that you still have mercy to show."  
Leliana's anger subsided, replaced by a tender tremor. "You are a fool to have such faith in me," she sighed, "But you are my fool." Leliana shifted her position and began to undo the bindings holding Elissa to the chair.  
"Must you untie me? Here I thought I was ready for the taking," a rogue's grin flashed on Elissa's face, and the crimson washing over Leliana must have shown because the grin settled in and made its way to Elissa's eyes.  
Continuing to untie the bindings, Leliana turned her gaze to what she was doing, "I am not sure that I particularly want to associate this room with that."  
"Good point."  
Wanting to change the subject, she said, "You have a lot to tell me of your journeys in the last four months...it has been a torture not hearing from you for so long," Leliana hoped the hurt she felt didn't show, then added, "And your last letter was so short, that I suppose it has been more like six months since I last heard from you."  
Elissa's now free hand reached out and gingerly held Leliana's arm, "I have been on a pilgrimage," her green eyes captivating her own.  
A pilgrimage? While Elissa knew the Maker, she was no Andrastian, let alone the sort to make a pilgrimage, "What? To where?"  
"To you."  
Leliana's heart skipped a beat. How could two words express so much? She tried to hide behind a mask of playfulness, "Is that innuendo, or are you just happy to see me?" She finally undid the last knot holding Elissa to the chair.  
A brief hint of sadness touched the smile around Elissa's eyes, and Leliana instantly regretted her jest, "It is both, of course."  
Elissa stood up, and Leliana noted a softness to Elissa's stance that she did not remember. Was that age she wondered, or something else?  
Interrupting the thought, Elissa observed, "Your uniform suits you, part Sister, part Bard. I like it."  
"My what? Oh," Leliana touched her hood. That comparison had never occurred to her. Her life as a cloistered sister seemed so far and away that she stopped thinking of herself as a sister long ago. But, of course, Elissa would see her thus. "You like it?"  
"I do. Could use a blue ribbon though," Elissa dodged Leliana's half attempt at a swipe, leaving a smile to form on Leliana lips.  
Hoping the crimson hue of her face had passed, "I think it's time we visited those chambers you so foolishly left."  
"I thought you'd never ask," grinned Elissa as they left the room.

Munin's hand was on her dagger in a flash, but seeing the smile on Leliana's face relaxed her.  
"A friend, Ser?"  
"The Hero of Ferelden."  
Munin's eyes widened, and she bowed her head, "I am sorry, I had not known, I..."  
Maker, it seemed like nearly everyone in Thedas knew that they were lovers, and while she could not stand their knowing when Elissa was away, now she could hardly care for her gladness.  
"Thanks to this fool," she tossed a playful glance at Elissa, who was still grinning like an imp, "You would have had no way of knowing, be at ease."  
Munin reluctantly eased her stance and nodded.  
Leliana instructed Munin to send Elissa's things to her outer chambers, adding that unless she was needed she would retire for the night.  
Soon, Leliana and Elissa began to make their way to Leliana's quarters.

"I should bring you before the Inquisitor and the other advisers, now that you're here...but," she paused, to make her meaning clear, "I think I shall have you to myself tonight."  
Elissa's fingers wove through her own, and she brought Leliana's gloved hand up to her lips.  
How could she shiver at a kiss she could hardly feel? Bringing herself out of the moment she was caught in, Leliana managed to ask, "So, having made it all the way to my chambers, why did you leave? Could you not have made your point there?"  
Elissa gently laughed, and Leliana's breath caught for a brief moment.  
"To be found, of course, as I could not just sit there all night, waiting to be discovered. Knowing you, I may not have seen you till dawn and," Elissa's eyes caught Leliana's, "Maker knows, I could not have waited that much longer."  
Leliana tore away from that gaze, "You are going to drive me mad well before we reach my rooms," she took in a deep breath to calm herself.  
After the moment passed, and another set of stairs climbed, "I left you a box of Orlesian chocolates by your bed, you know," Elissa ventured, "They are so good that you may even forget I'm there."  
Leliana turned and brought her lips to Elissa's, holding her in a kiss meant to silence and to awaken. Releasing her, Leliana ordered, "Stop. Talking."  
"Yes, Ser." Elissa said breathlessly.  
They made the rest of their way to Leliana's chambers in silence.

~~~

"Maker!"  
Leliana and Elissa's bodies collapsed onto the bed. Their sweat beaded, their breath ragged. And soon, Leliana started nibbling on Elissa's ear, eager to begin again.  
"Leliana!" she gasped, "I have yet to catch my breath!"  
"Catch it then, I'm not stopping you," her fingers exploring Elissa's naked breast.  
The woman moaned, her body twisting a little as she did so.  
Leliana could tell that Elissa was torn, not knowing if she could bear to say 'more,' or bear to say 'less.'  
"How about those chocolates?" Elissa finally managed.  
So it was to be 'less,' it seemed.  
Leliana teased, "I suppose I could take a break for chocolates...."  
"Thank the Maker for small favors, then," Elissa rose from the bed before Leliana had a chance to change her mind.  
The woman rummaged in a bag she left behind during her earlier visit and produced the promised box.  
Leliana gently lifted the lid and tried a truffle shaped like a rose bud...her eyes closed as she melted.  
"Good?"  
Wordlessly, Leliana nodded.  
Elissa began rummaging again, and Leliana stole a glance at the remaining contents of the bag.  
"Are those my letters?"  
"Of course, you didn't think that I would discard them did you?" Elissa chuckled, and finally found what she was searching for.  
"Here," she handed Leliana a small vial that fit neatly in her palm, "it is an essence of Andraste's Grace...I am sorry that it isn't completely full. I used a few drops over the past couple of weeks."  
Leliana melted again, "that was a wonderful thought...I don't know what to say."  
Elissa climbed back into bed and lay on her back next to Leliana, "You can say how things have been for you since Corephyus was defeated."  
Leliana set the box and the vial aside on a nearby pedestal, "Nothing exciting, I'm afraid. Only having to chose between becoming an adviser to Cassandra or Evelyn, and turning down an offer to become the new Divine myself."  
"You were a candidate for Divine, and you turned it down?" Elissa asked, her disbelief obvious, "Why?"  
Leliana threw a hand in the air, and rolled her eyes, "I swear, sometimes you could not be more dense," she leaned over Elissa and brought her lips to Elissa's brow, "I have had my fill of Me and of You, and I am quite ready for Us...do I really need to spell this out for you?" her bare chest brushing against Elissa's arm.  
"Oh."  
"Oh, indeed."  
Elissa grew quiet, as Leliana traced the outline of her jaw with her lips, lingering to breathe sweet Elissa in.  
A long and delicious moment passed.  
"Leliana..." Elissa sighed. "Leliana, the Calling is nearly upon me, I can feel it...."  
The moment shattered, and Leliana could scarcely speak, "What do you mean? How...how do you know?"  
"..."  
"Elissa!" her panic rising.  
"I...look, aside from this business with Corypheus, keeping myself from dreaming of the darkspawn over the last year has been...difficult," she managed, "and I can hardly avoid them anymore."  
"But you had finally found a promising lead...you sounded so sure in your last letter...didn't you?" Leliana pleaded.  
Elissa sighed, and Leliana saw what it was that had softened Elissa's stance. Defeat. _Oh, Elissa...._  
"In all my findings, I have only seen one constant." Leliana noted the brief pause as Elissa took in a breath, "No act is without consequence, and every consequence outweighs the action...like a pebble tossed into a pool disrupts the whole pool." Elissa's weary eyes, heavy with years of searching, and grieving, and longing, finally met Leliana's and, suddenly, Leliana saw how much Elissa had aged since they were last together.  
Elissa continued, "The Joining is Old Magic of the highest order, as it must be, for nothing less could combat other Old Magics such as the Blight. There is always a price for such power and more so for the power to change it, and..." Elissa's voice faltered, and Leliana's heart broke at the sound of it, "Maker forgive me, I can not do what must be done to rid me of this Call!"  
Leliana grasped, "You...found a cure?"  
"I found another curse!"  
"Elissa," she said as deliberately and calmly as she could manage, "What did you discover?"  
"It's too dangerous Leliana, you would surely die...and..." Elissa's voice broke off, having said too much.  
"It would involve me?"  
Elissa nodded.  
"What do I need to do?"  
Elissa's body tensed beside her, "Enough! I said that I can not do it, and I will not! I..."  
"Hush then," Leliana's rested her fingers on Elissa's lips, "Let us be free of cures, and curses, and tomorrows in this moment...I want only you here with me this night," Leliana's lips moved tenderly upon Elissa's neck, expelling a soft and warm breath, pleading, "Please."  
A silent moment passed and Elissa embraced Leliana, "I want nothing more." 


	2. The Second Day

Josephine's main office was a welcoming place, with several easy chairs and a warming fire. Once she had heard that there was to be a meeting with the Hero of Ferelden, she went beyond her usual hospitable tray of sweet cakes and added a whole lunch of sandwiches and juices in time for their arrival. It was midday, and the sun's rays streamed in to touch the delicate Antivan rugs Josephine had so artfully arranged.  
Leliana and Elissa had awoken early, but remained in each others arms, and more, for most of the morning. It was many hours later when Leliana could finally tear herself from their intimacy. She sent a request for a meeting with the Inquisitor and the other advisers soon after.  
Leliana was wearing one of her favorite dresses. Simple and pale blue, it was cut a little low around her neck, with sleeves coming down just past her elbows. Matching blue silk shoes, with delicate white lace about the ankle and embroidery around the toe, adorned her feet.  
Earlier, at the market stalls, Elissa had chosen a cream colored linen shirt. The collar was loose, and the long sleeves were folded back to her forearms. There, she also found a heavy cotton skirt, in deep green. It flowed down to her boots...those same boots with the faded ribbons. Leliana warmed at Elissa's sentimental gesture.  
Evelyn was in a relaxed yellow silk shirt, and an orange tinted leather vest that brought out the golden hue of her eyes and of the tattoo decorating her face. Her plain brown leather pants and boots, balanced the vibrancy of her outfit. Cullen, on the other hand, seemed to sleep in his pauldrons...although she too had been fairly wedded to her uniform as of late. His gloves rested on his knee, but otherwise he maintained the rest of his outfit...armor and more armor. Josephine's dark blue and bright gold outfit was a welcome contrast. The Antivan had added a few ornaments to her hair for the occasion, but nothing more. Likely she thought the decorative hair pins were far too bold already. Leliana smiled to herself.  
"I've got to say that you have me at a disadvantage Ser Warden," Cullen was saying, "If I had known sooner of your arrival, I could have had the troops demonstrate their training for you."  
"Oh Cullen," Josephine tutted, "Not everyone lives and breathes troops and training," she turned to Elissa and asked in her quick Antivan manner, "Perhaps the Hero of Ferelden would like to share an exciting tale or two of her recent exploits?"  
"I'm sure she's had at least one in her run in with your spies last night," Evelyn offered with a grin. Leliana was surprised the Inquisitor had even heard of the incident. "You aren't my only eyes and ears, you know," she answered Leliana's unspoken question.  
Elissa laughed, "I can not comment on that, I'm sure, but truly my life is not exciting...I have no real stories to tell."  
"Uniting Ferelden and ending the Blight is hardly nothing," Cullen parried.  
"And I'm sure you all know that story well," Elissa said, "But, seeing as how I've been wandering far from my native lands for so many years, I am quite interested in any stories of your own."  
Leliana listened to her friends tell the tale of the Inquisition in silent contentment, gazing all the while at her lover.  
Elissa always knew how to draw out others to fill in the center stage, how to show them that they mattered, how to listen and truly hear them. All those long ago nights by the campfire, Elissa had been working that same silent magic on her...and the threads of those weavings were still tied to her, like faded ribbons on buckles.  
Another hour later Evelyn and Cullen excused themselves to attend to their duties, leaving them alone with Josephine.  
"I am so pleased to finally meet you, Elissa!" Josephine gushed, "I hope that you will be staying for a while longer, as I would like to ensure you receive a proper welcome at Skyhold."  
Elissa bowed her head, "The pleasure is mine, truly."  
"Love?" Elissa's head turned in response, and Leliana continued, "I have a few things to discuss with Josie, could you..."  
"Say no more," Elissa said with a quick smile, "I recall seeing a tavern that begged exploring. Shall I see you there when you are ready?"  
Leliana nodded, "The tavern is perfect. You do not mind, I hope?"  
A tender kiss on her cheek told her all was well, and Elissa strolled off.  
Once the door shut Josephine turned to her friend, "You are full of surprises Leliana."  
"Am I?" she asked in seeming innocence.  
"When was the last time you wore anything other than your uniform? This is quite a nice change," Josephine leaned in conspiratorially to add, "And, Elissa is not at all what I expected. I never would have guessed your type to be...strong and silent," she smiled.  
A little offended, Leliana bristled, "Oh? And why not?"  
"Come now Leliana, you know that I do not mean to offend you. I was simply trying to say that I think she is a perfect match for you." Josephine continued, "She softens you, and that..." Josephine paused, looking for the right words, "That gladdens me."  
Josephine then shifted into a coy posture and added, "Not to mention that she is also quite handsome."  
"And quite taken," Leliana noted in mock jealousy.  
They laughed. Josie knew how to lighten a mood.  
"But, something is troubling you."  
As well as darken it, it seemed.  
"Her quest is over," Leliana said finally.  
"You mean she has found a cure for the Calling? That's wonderful! When did she..." Josephine paused in concern, catching the worry on Leliana's face, "Leliana, what is it?"  
"...she won't go through with it."  
"What! Why not?"  
Leliana wrestled with how much to tell Josephine, and took a chance, "It would involve me, and she insists that the risk would be too great...she won't even tell me what it is, and I..." Leliana forced herself to continue, "Josie, she says that the Calling is almost upon her."  
"But, she seems so well..." Josephine protested in shock.  
A bitter laugh erupted from Leliana. If only it was as simple as that!  
"The Calling doesn't kill a Warden Josie, a Warden hears the Call and goes to die."  
To die surrounded by darkspawn in the cavernous Deep Roads...or live a short and tormented life as a ghoul. Cut off from the sun and the stars, forgotten and alone.  
"Oh, Leliana...I..." Josephine threw her arms around Leliana and held her tight, "I am sorry."  
A sound caught in Leliana's throat, like a thrush in a trap. And, like a thrush, the sound softly died.

~~~

Leliana entered the tavern. It had been weeks since she last visited, but it felt as though the place had remained exactly as she left it. Looking around, she found Elissa sitting at a table where Sera was wildly gesturing at her.  
Leliana smirked, Elissa was sure to have her hands full, and she walked over to the table.  
"I've got all kinds of cookies!" Sera said with much excitement, "Loads and loads! Here," shoving another bag before Elissa, "Try these."  
Elissa dutifully took a bite and nodded in approval. Sera's chest puffed out in pride, "They're Inky's favorite," and without skipping a beat, "We baked all of these ourselves, you know! They took all night!"  
Elissa hesitated for a moment, deciphering the code, "The Inquisitor?"  
"The Inquisiarse! Don't you go daft tits on me, she's real people." Sera cocked her head to the side and grinned, "Real people with a sweet arse. Get it? Haha!" Sera laughed her arse off.  
Once Sera had settled down, Elissa asked, "So...you and the Inqui...I mean, Inky, you do a lot of baking then?"  
"Yeah, all the time!"  
"Does that not get a bit...hot?"  
"Oh yeah, very hot. Almost can't stand how hot it is."  
"I see," Elissa continued, "and you bake a lot of cookies at one go?"  
"Yeah, the oven's always full to bursting, sometimes we have to get creative or we can't get it all in."  
"That is a lot of cookies."  
"It is, innit?" a quizzical look passed over Sera's face and she shook her head, "No. No it isn't. I can't get enough of Inky's cookies."  
"You know, I will have to try baking with Leliana sometime," Elissa threw a playful glance at Leliana, "Although, it is her song that I cannot get enough of."  
"You don't bake?!" Sera turned to Leliana, disbelief in her eyes, then added, "I could teach you how, if you wanted."  
Elissa's face contorted as she kept from bursting with laughter. Leliana managed, "No, thank you Sera. I am sure I can work it out on my own."  
"Suit yourself," Sera's eyes narrowed, and after a moment the went wide again, "You were in Denerim! I thought I saw you somewhere before all this!" gesturing as if she meant the whole of Thedas.  
Leliana tilted her head slightly, not sure of Sera's meaning, "I have been to Denerim plenty of times, yes."  
"No! I mean that one time...you know?" disappointment hung on her face at Leliana's continued confusion, "You know, during the Blight! You were there...with her!" she pointed at Elissa, "You came to the alienage and helped when no one else would," she threw her arms around Leliana, surprising her, and after an awkward moment Leliana patted Sera on the back.  
Sera pulled back and declared, "You're still pretty scary, but I've always known you were good people...here," she pulled a set of keys out of a stained pocket somewhere and handed them to Leliana, "I'm sorry I took these."  
They were keys to some of the rookery's chests...she had suspected that Sera might have had a set.  
"I didn't use them...much...anyway, sorry," Sera said sheepishly.  
"No harm done." Leliana could not help but smirk.  
Sera beamed back and picked up most of the cookie bags, leaving one behind with Elissa, "Let me know if you want more, I've still got loads!" She lifted the bags as if they hadn't already seen them, and then happily hopped along to her next target.  
"You are terrible," Leliana said, once Sera was out of earshot.  
"The temptation was too great and I could hardly resist...did she really have no idea what I was saying?"  
"Sera does not do subtle, no," Leliana smiled, "Not that you were even remotely that."  
"Well, Inky is getting better and better in my book," she pulled out a chair for Leliana to join her, and Leliana obliged.  
Elissa continued, "I am glad that you found this family Leliana."  
Leliana brightened at the thought. It really was a family wasn't it?  
"Oh, I don't know...have you actually met them all?"  
"Quite a few," Elissa chuckled, "There was this young man, Cole I think, who just wouldn't stop talking to me about cups. Spoke of almost nothing else...he was really sweet though," she paused, then went on to say, "Anyway, I think that you left that Qunari," pointing with her chin to the other side of the tavern, "Completely smitten, I'm afraid," she added mischievously, "Not that I am at all surprised."  
Elissa's poise was so much more like she remembered it. At ease...like a cool spring inviting you to shed your worries and take a dip. That she had so little time left was...beyond belief....  
 _Oh, Maker._  
"What'll it be, Sers?" a waiter suddenly appeared and asked, wiping her hands on her apron as she did so.  
"I will have a tisane," Leliana said, glad for the interruption.  
"I think I am going to have to ask for some milk," Elissa gestured at the bag of cookies before her, "If you have any, that is."  
"That'll be no problem," and the waiter went off.  
"So," Leliana ventured, "you haven't had an official tour of Skyhold yet. Would you care for one?"  
"I would love a tour of your favorite places, this hold..." Elissa waved her hand generally, "Is pretty immense," she added with a grin, "And I've already been to the most important part."  
Leliana ignored the addition, and went on, "Then, we will go up to the top of my favorite tower, and head to the gardens after that."  
"That sounds lovely," she reached out and held Leliana's hand.  
They sat in silent companionship till they were ready to leave the surprising comfort of the tavern.

~~~

"I can see why you favor this spot, the view is..." Elissa was lost for words.  
"Breathtaking." Leliana offered.  
"Yes, breathtaking," Elissa continued, "You can see for miles!"  
A silent moment passed between them, as Elissa took in the expanse of the Frostbacks, before Leliana spoke.  
"Sometimes, I would come up here...at night when Skyhold was mostly sleeping...and I would search for you in the horizon. I thought that perhaps, one day, I would see a campfire in the distance and know that you were finally home." Leliana turned her head away as tears stung her eyes, wiping at them in frustration. She hadn't meant for the hurt to show so completely.  
"Leliana...I..." Elissa took her hand, but Leliana kept her gaze aimed away from Elissa.  
Once she felt confident that she would not burst into a fit of sobbing, she continued, "Why will you not tell me what you discovered, Elissa. Do I not have a right to know?"  
Elissa's hand squeezed Leliana's tightly, startling her. She turned back to face Elissa, and was met by eyes she hardly knew. They were at once distant and primal.  
"Elissa?"  
A spark of Elissa returned to those eyes, and after a moment she braved, "You would need to go through the Joining ritual yourself, and then I would renew my own Joining with your newly tainted blood." Elissa's breath evened out, and she continued, "You would have to survive the Joining, and I would still be subject to the Calling, as would you, but I would regain the years lost...reset the clock, as it were...at the cost of your own natural life," her eyes were bolder now, more steady, "If we could imbue your tainted blood with enough lyrium, then we would not have to completely drain you and leave you for dead. This could give us another ten to thirty years together, and when the time finally came, we would both have to heed the Call."  
She would have to become a Grey Warden? This seemed...simple...why was Elissa so set against this? She was missing something.  
"I am not sure I fully understand what you are saying."  
Elissa let go of her hand, and stepped back to lean against the stone wall, "Intention is at the heart of this rite. The Blight had to be ended, but at what cost? What cost could humanity possibly pay to end the Blight that didn't destroy the world itself?"  
Elissa turned her gaze to look back out onto the horizon, "The cost had to be great but, to leave a world worth living in, it also had to be personal, and so the Grey Wardens, each and every one, has paid that cost with their lives...blood for blood," a sadness returned to her eyes and she continued, "A Grey Warden can not simply wipe away that cost, not with anything less than blood...and for such a bargain to work, the blood must be precious."  
Leliana breathed, "But we would get time..."  
"You would lose time," Elissa snapped.  
"You do not really know that," Leliana said.  
"My love, I am fairly certain that I do..." Elissa sighed, "Please, let us speak of this no longer."  
They remained at the top of the tower for a short while, before making their way to Skyhold's garden.

~~~

The garden was uncharacteristically empty, and that was a welcome reprieve for Leliana. She was at a loss on how to approach Elissa, and needed the emotional space to contemplate their situation.  
From their sheltered bench, Leliana turned her gaze to look over the flowers that filled this sanctuary. She was glad that the Inquisitor decided to expand the garden itself, and saw many of her favorites. There was even a bed full of Andraste's Grace that Josie had so thoughtfully insisted on establishing. In the distance, Leliana's eyes spotted a flower she had not noticed before, and she instinctively bolted upright, startling Elissa.  
 _It could not be...a rose?_ She ran over to the flower, leaving Elissa stumbling after her.  
"Leliana? Leliana wait!" Leliana reached it, and saw that it was in fact a rose...sprung from a sudden and wiry spindle of a bush. Her hand went to it, and as her finger caught on the brier, a single drop of blood swelled and fell to the ground below it.  
Elissa's distant voice reached her ears, "You are bleeding, Leliana," she gently took her hand and pressed a square of linen to her finger, "what is going on?"  
"A rose..." Leliana tore her eyes from the flower and held Elissa by the shoulder, " _Though darkness closes, I am shielded by flame._ "  
"Leliana...are you...you are really beginning to worry me."  
It was clear to her now, her dream all those years ago...jumping into the darkness. She always thought that it ended with the Blight, but the Blight was not truly over, was it? Elissa was still in its thrall. The Blight was to devour all good things in the Maker's world, and its dark work was not yet finished.  
"Elissa, it's a rose, a rose on an impossible bush," she gestured at it.  
Elissa's eyes widened in understanding, "But that has nothing to do with this...Leliana, be reasonable...not every rose is a sign from the Maker!"  
Leliana's eyes hardened, "I know what I must do, Elissa. I must jump into this darkness."  
"First of all, for argument's sake, I recall you saying that you fell into the darkness." Elissa countered.  
Leliana shook her head, "No, I jumped. I often wondered why I would do such a thing, and so I had assumed that I must have simply fallen," Leliana's eyes held Elissa's, "But now I know. I jumped, as I must jump now."  
"But you can't be serious!" Elissa's voice rose in anger, "Leliana, I must insist..."  
"Enough!" Leliana's eyes narrowed, and Elissa leaned back slightly, "You have done your part for all these years, and now it is my turn to do mine!" more softly, she continued, "You said that I guide you, as the Maker guides me...Elissa, how can I ignore Him in this?"  
"Fairly easily, I'm sure."  
Leliana brushed off the response, "You chose to become a Grey Warden and fight the darkspawn, Elissa," Leliana leaned in towards her, "Are you suggesting that I am not allowed the same choice?"  
"It was no choice!" a long gone edge to Elissa's voice resurfaced, cold and dangerous, "You know that I was conscripted against my will and forced into the Joining under the threat of death."  
Leliana softened, remembering the tale of Elissa's Joining. Her violation was absolute, and yet she still fought the Blight, still united a fractured land, still lived to see another day.  
"You chose life, Elissa," she rested her hand on Elissa's cheek, "As do I."  
"Hardly," Elissa shot back, though her edge had dulled, "And you would be mad to think that I would ever agree to do this."  
Leliana stepped back, and at once saw where the darkness gripped Elissa's heart.  
"This isn't about me dying is it?" Leliana asked, "We have faced death together many times before, and you never shied away then..." Leliana added softly, "You are protecting me from yourself, aren't you?"  
Elissa drew back, a panic in her eyes, and Leliana's heart ached at the agony she now plainly saw on Elissa's face.  
"We have both suffered, my love," Leliana held Elissa by her waist, "Denying me this choice is no mercy to either of us."  
Leliana continued, "This is my gift to you, that you are no Duncan." Tears streamed down Elissa face, and Leliana kissed her wet cheek.  
Resting her forehead against Elissa's, she asked, "Will you let me choose my own path?"  
Elissa nodded, choking with sobs, as she collapsed into Leliana's arms.  
An old song emerged from the moment, and Leliana set it free into the evening.  
" _Hahren na melana sahlin..._ "  
It washed over Elissa, stilling her tremors, and left her tears free to flow.

~~~

"I don't know about this, Leliana," Elissa doubted, her hand absent mindedly tugging at the parcel beneath her arm. "Several Warden Mages are often used to prepare the blood. Are you certain that this single mage will have the experience and the power do this?"  
Leliana continued climbing the stairs up the tower, finally reaching the Mages' floor.  
"We will not find a mage better suited to this task, trust me in this."  
Turning towards an alcove, they saw a magpie of a man sitting in a large and easy leather chair. His flowing and artfully arranged mage's robes were covered, almost at random, in gems. With their presence obvious, they waited a moment as he finished reading a line in a large tome before he stood and turned his attention to his visitors. His dark eyes took in the pair immediately.  
"Ah! My dear Sister Nightingale! It is a surprise to see you," he flourished with a deep bow. When he rose, his eyes flashed in curiosity as he turned to Elissa, "And you must be the famed Hero of Ferelden! Dorian of House Pavus, it is my pleasure to finally meet you. Leliana is quite tight lipped about herself, you see, and knowing that she has a life outside that clamorous rookery of hers is quite heartening. So, to what do I owe this pleasure?"  
Leliana replied, "We need to speak with you about an urgent and private matter, Dorian. The balcony outside the rookery upstairs would be ideal, if you have a moment." It was not truly a request, but Dorian treated it as such.  
"Of course! Lead on, my dear."

~~~

"You want me to do what?!"  
Leliana took in a deep breath, ready to answer, but Elissa responded, "We need you to imbue darkspawn blood with lyrium, and then Leliana's once the Taint takes hold."  
"Please Dorian, you are the only mage I trust with this task," Leliana pleaded.  
His eyes turned to her, "You do realize that while I hail from Tevinter, I am not actually a Blood Mage, yes? No matter what you southerners think, those two things are not synonymous."  
Elissa's voice grew cold, "Will you help us or not?"  
If Dorian detected the change in tone, he did not show it. "Of course, I will help. But, you don't expect me to walk into this blindly, do you?"  
"Of course not Dorian, what more do you wish to know?" Leliana answered before Elissa's sudden irritation muddied the waters.  
"Firstly, I wish to know what you hope to gain."  
"Elissa's freedom from the Calling," she replied simply.  
Dorian continued, "Secondly, I doubt that you have recently slain darkspawn in preparation for this ritual, how do you intend to do this?"  
Elissa opened her parcel to reveal a chalice, and a large vial full of blood the color of tar, "This is the blood of an Archdemon, slain by my hand ten years ago."  
Dorian looked from the vial to Elissa in one fluid movement, "You just so happened to bottle it up and keep it on your person? Quite an odd thing to do, isn't it?"  
"She left it in my care. I had no idea what it was in that box all these years, but I have kept it safe with me all the same." Leliana always wondered what was in the box, but Elissa was so insistent that it remain closed until her death or return that she honored her love's wish.  
"As for why I have it at all, can you honestly not guess?" Elissa asked. "It may be several hundred years before we see another Archdemon, anything we can learn and glean about the Blight rests in this vial."  
"A vial you intend to use entirely on this ritual?" his eyes bright and challenging.  
Without hesitation Elissa responded, "Yes."  
Leliana reached for her hand, and gave it a gentle squeeze.  
Elissa turned to her, with an intensity to her gaze that Leliana hadn't seen in nearly ten long years, "Don't you dare second guess yourself now Leliana! The blood's potency is essential. Too weak and it will leave you blighted but no Warden, and I will not lose another soul to chance for the Grey Wardens, especially not yours!"  
"You mean the Blight?" Dorian corrected.  
"No, mage," Elissa challenged, turning that intensity upon him, "I mean the Grey Wardens."  
"I see," knowing how Dorian's mind worked, Leliana had no doubt that he did. "So, that's the great secret of the Joining ritual of the Grey Wardens, is it? Don't care to join our death cult? Well, too bad."  
Elissa regarded Dorian with the eyes of an expert tactician, and nodded, "You will help us then?"  
Seemingly oblivious to the question posed to him, Dorian went on. "You know, there is one more piece to this puzzle that neither of you seem to know about, and how could you? You see, when Evelyn and I were thrown into that alternate future in Redcliffe, we came across some documents. They detailed medical experiments carried out on that alternate future's Leliana. She was of extreme interest to Gereon Alexius, you see, because she seemed to have an unusually strong resistance to the Blight. Quite fascinating, if you can get around how morbid the whole affair was."  
"I did not know this! Why have neither of you ever told me this before?" Leliana demanded.  
"It simply never came up between you and I, and I suspect that Evelyn could not bring herself to describe the horrors inflicted upon you. That Leliana had no interest in pity, or sorrow, all that was left of her was anger...and, in the end, faith."  
Elissa's arm wrapped around Leliana shoulders like a protective shield, her lips brushing against her brow. Elissa then turned her attention to Dorian, "What are you saying, Dorian?"  
"What I am suggesting is that this will either go remarkably well, or horribly wrong. Without further study, I can not rightly say. Regardless, I doubt you have much time for research with your current state...and yes...I can tell. The whole situation is certainly a gamble."  
"All that is worthwhile in life is a gamble," Leliana stated.  
Dorian continued, "If your theory is sound, and I suspect that it is, then we will have to act quickly. I will need to prepare as much lyrium as I can prior to the first Joining ritual, so that when it succeeds...if it succeeds...we waste as little time as possible in imbuing the blood for the second."  
"Thank you Dorian, this means the world to me," Leliana threw her arms around the mage.  
His arms returned her embrace, "My dear Leliana, if some other you can save my wretched hide at the cost of her own, after an ordeal that one can hardly do justice in describing with so mundane a word as 'horrific,' then I can certainly do all that I can to save your love, yes?"  
Leliana nodded and released him.  
With more enthusiasm than she could muster, Dorian said, "Now, leave me with the vial and off you with you two! Return to me at dawn and we shall begin."  
"Don't you also need the chalice?" Elissa questioned.  
"No, no, no...I've got one of my own that will do nicely. Now, leave me to my work! Shoo!"

Knowing full well that the night may be their last together, Leliana and Elissa spent it like there were no cures, no curses, no tomorrows. Only Us.


	3. The Third Day

The dawn had come, and Leliana chose the top of her favorite tower in Skyhold for her Joining ritual. She had left a sealed note upon her desk in the rookery. It was to be delivered to Josephine if anything were to happen to her, mostly to absolve Dorian of any wrongdoing, but also because she could not bear to leave her dear friend behind with no explanations.  
Dorian was unusually somber, and she could see the toll of casting magic through the night had had on him. Dorian...yet another mage that was a better person than she ever was. She turned her attention to her love, who stood silent and lost like a sentinel that no longer had to stand guard. She had been so strong for so long, and Leliana wanted nothing more than to release her of her duty.  
Though she never breathed it aloud, she knew that her own death would end that duty as surely as ending Elissa's Calling would. And, strangely, she was at peace with that possibility. Elissa's resolve, however, was beginning to waver. The weight of what they were about to do hanging heavy in every passing minute.  
Leliana reached for the waiting chalice, full with the blood of an ancient and tainted Old God, and walked over to her long suffering love.  
"The river is full, and it is time to cross, don't you think?" she held Elissa's hand.  
Elissa's unsure eyes, glistening like emeralds in the dawn's light, met hers, "I always expected it to be a river of tears, not blood...."  
"My love," she squeezed Elissa's hand, "It has always been both."  
Reluctantly, Elissa nodded.  
Leliana held the chalice up and whispered a silent prayer, " _Let the blade pass through the flesh, Let my blood touch the ground, Let my cries touch their hearts. Let mine be the last sacrifice._ "  
She drank.  
And the pain began. Her veins were aflame with the venomous blood of an Archdemon, and it spread far more quickly than any venom should. The pain was so great, that Leliana feared that she would drop the chalice, with the little blood that remained, before she could drink it all. It was all she could do to remain upright, even her eyes were on fire.  
She felt a scream rise out of her, taking her breath and strength with it. Her legs could no longer carry the weight of her body, and she felt like she was falling though she never hit the ground. _Elissa?_ She could barely think, barely breathe, and it was not long before the pain and the darkness took her.

Leliana heard her name in the distance, but her head was too heavy and she could not turn it to see who it was. Her name became clearer, almost tangible, and the darkness began to give way to a soft light. She was in the arms of someone, but she knew not whose. Why was she so dizzy? There was a chalice, full of...blood? Yes, of Blood.  
"Leliana!" the cry came again, and this time Leliana had the strength to move her head towards the person who belonged to these gentle arms.  
"Elissa?" she managed, although she was not sure that it was her own voice that emerged from her lips.  
A kiss full of tears held her suddenly, and it brought back a warmth to her that she didn't realize she had lost.  
"Elissa! You must drink this now, while it still holds potency! Quickly!" a man was shouting. Dorian?  
"But, I must keep Leliana's wound..."  
"Maker's Breath! I will hold and keep pressure on it, just get drinking already!"  
Leliana felt her body shift into the arms of another, and slowly she began to realize where she was.  
She had drunk the blood of an Archdemon, and survived. Elissa and Dorian must have let her blood while she was still recovering...meaning....  
There was hope.  
Holding her own wound, she was able to stand on her own legs now. She saw Elissa raise the crimson chalice to her own mouth, and then fall to ground, writhing.  
Leliana tore away from Dorian, and stumbled towards Elissa.  
"Elissa!" She reached her and tried to still the thrashings.  
A long string of moments arced around them, and then slowly, Elissa's body stilled till there was only a soft and haggard breathing.  
"She's through the worst of it now," Dorian lay a hand on Leliana's shoulder. His voice was heavy with the burden of their two lives, and Leliana's held his hand in turn, squeezing it in silent thanks.  
"Did it work, you think?"  
"We won't know till she wakes, but with you it seemed to surprise Elissa. It was very unusual, according to her."  
"Unusual? How so?"  
"Something about your eyes not turning white, but she was so frantic she didn't elaborate. And, then I was busy imbuing your own blood of course." Dorian picked up the chalice with his free hand and regarded it in silence.  
"Thank you, Dorian."  
His eyes snapped back to hers, "Oh, not this again!" the hint of a smile on the corners of his mouth.  
Elissa began to stir, and Leliana held her more tightly, "Elissa?"  
A few moments passed, and Elissa's eyes flew open. She swung her head wildly towards Leliana.  
Taken aback, Leliana asked, "Are you alright?"  
"Did my eyes turn white!? Did you dream!?" she demanded.  
Leliana was startled by the panicked state Elissa was in, "What? What are you talking about?"  
Elissa grabbed her shoulder, "Answer me!"  
"No...I don't think your eyes did anything strange, and I certainly didn't dream," her suspicions getting the better of her she pressed, "Why does this matter?"  
Elissa's eyes darted to her hands, her chest, as if she did not expect to see them.  
"I didn't dream. Leliana, I didn't dream!"  
"Perhaps you hit your head on the stone floor a little hard, yes?" Dorian offered.  
Elissa turned to them, her eyes bright with wonder. A spark that Leliana had thought was long lost.  
"I...we didn't dream, your eyes...my eyes...didn't turn white. These things are hallmarks of a Joining...what does it mean? Why was it different? Why do I feel different?"  
"Other than this Joining being an act of selfless love rather than an act carried out in fear and under the threat of death? Just about everything." Dorian scoffed, and continued, "I can tell you that no mage in her right mind would have come up with the ritual you described to me...it smacked of something a member of the warrior class would dream up. Sure mages were brought in to refine it and make it actually work, but there was no elegance to the solution," his eyes turned back to the chalice in his hand.  
"I improvised a little, and added a touch of grace to a graceless rite. You know of the power of intention, I assume? Your love was as important, if not more so, than the blood of an Archdemon, but the Joining ritual had no place for it, so I wove it in," he raised the chalice to them, "into this. A vessel of love and life that was to bind the two of you in your rebirth."  
His somber mood lifted, and he smiled and said, "And with this bloodied chalice, I thee wed. Oh, one does find Tevinter in the little things, yes?"  
Leliana and Elissa laughed, and cried, and held each other with kisses for an age and more.  
Dorian stood, and bowed. "Oh, Dorian, your extraordinary intellect has won the day once more! No, no, you humble me with such praise, I can not possibly take all the credit. Dorian, please...stop moving about, or the statue we're carving to memorialize your great achievement will be ruined!"  
When it was apparent that they were lost to their joy, he continued with a soft smile, "Nothing to say? Well, I suppose I do leave people speechless in my wake."  
He bowed once more and said, "I'll leave you to it, then. Try not roll off the top of the tower, will you? That would be an unnecessary mess."  
And so, Dorian left.  
Elissa's sweet tears mingled with her own, and Leliana laughed in surprise at the taste. It was a bright laugh, and Elissa's kiss deepened at the sound of it. The sharp longing that often accompanied their kisses was gone and in its stead was wonder. Wonder at the kiss. Wonder at the moment, like clipped wings taking flight. Her heart soared, no longer buffeted by her love for the woman she held, but carried.  
"It's over," Elissa whispered.  
Leliana shook her head, "It's begun."  
And then, Leliana saw something new in her Elissa. Gone was the shackle of determination, the vigil for a duty imposed. Green eyes framed with impossibly sweet tears looked into her own, and Leliana understood what she saw.  
She saw hope.  
"You're right, beloved," Elissa spoke, "Where, then, shall we begin?"  
Leliana cried, her heart full with thanks to the Maker.

**Author's Note:**

>   
>  **Appendix**  
>   
> 
> Leliana's Vision (as told by Leliana in "Dragon Age: Origins")
> 
> "I don't know how to explain, but I had a dream. In it there was an impentratable darkness...it was so dense, so real. And there was a noise, a terrible, ungodly noise...I stood on a peak, and watched as the darkness consumed everything...And when the storm swallowed the last of the sun's light I...I fell. And the darkness drew me in...When I woke, I went to the Chantry's gardens, as I always do, but that day the rose bush in the corner had flowered. Everyone knew that bush was dead, it was grey and twisted and gnarled, the ugliest thing you ever saw. But there it was, a single beautiful rose. It was as though the Maker stretched out his hand to say, "Even in the midst of this darkness, there is hope and beauty, have faith." In my dream, I fell, or...or maybe I jumped...I'd do anything to stop the Blight. I know that we can do it. There are so many good things in the Maker's world. How can I sit by while the Blight devours...everything?"
> 
> \---
> 
> "Alindra and her Soldier" (as told by Leliana in "Dragon Age: Origins")
> 
> "A long time ago, there lived a fair maiden called Alindra. She had many suitors, but spurned them all, for she did not love them. One day, Alindra was sitting by her window in her father’s castle, singing and dreaming, when her lovely voice caught the attention of a young soldier. Entranced by her song, the soldier drew near to Alindra’s window. As their eyes met, he fell in love with her, and she with him. When Alindra told her father about the man she had chosen, he was furious, for Alindra was high-born, but her love nothing more than a common soldier. To keep them apart, her father had Alindra imprisoned in the highest tower of his castle and sent her soldier to the wars. And alas, not a month had passed before news of the soldier’s death reached Alindra. Alone in her tower, Alindra wept for her love and beseeched the gods to deliver her from this cruel world. So earnest was her plea that the gods themselves were moved. They gathered Alindra into their arms and lifted her high into the heavens, where she became a star. The gods also raised up the soul of Alindra’s soldier love and there he dwells, across the horizon from her. The band of stars between them is a river of Alindra’s tears, cried for her lost love. They say that when Alindra has cried enough, she will be able to cross the river to be reunited with her soldier. The bond of love between Alindra and her soldier was so strong that the gods themselves took notice. This story is one of my favorites, a tale of love so great and so enduring that it defies death, and moves the gods to action."
> 
> \---
> 
> "In Uthenera" (as sung by Leliana in "Dragon Age: Origins")
> 
> Elven Lyrics:
> 
> Hahren na melana sahlin  
> Emma ir abelas  
> Souver'inan isala hamin  
> Vhenan him dor'felas  
> In Uthenera na revas
> 
> Vir sulan'nehn  
> Vir dirthera  
> Vir samahl la numin  
> Vir lath sav'unin
> 
> Vir sulan'nehn  
> Vir dirthera  
> Vir samahl la numin  
> Vir lath sav'unin
> 
> English Translation:
> 
> Elder your time has come  
> Now I am filled with sorrow  
> Weary eyes need resting  
> Heart has become grey and slow  
> In waking sleep is freedom
> 
> We sing, rejoice  
> We tell the tales  
> We laugh and cry  
> We love one more day
> 
> We sing, rejoice  
> We tell the tales  
> We laugh and cry  
> We love one more day
> 
> \---
> 
> Links of Interest (for those of you not in the know)  
> The Grey Wardens: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Grey_Wardens  
> The Calling: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Grey_Wardens#The_Calling  
> The Joining: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Joining  
> The Taint: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Taint  
> Darkspawn: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Darkspawn  
> Archdemon: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Archdemon  
> Lyrium: http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Lyrium


End file.
